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The US House Government Reform Committee held a November 14, hearing on
"Mercury in Dental Amalgams: An Examination of the Science," which covered
both health and environmental concerns of dental mercury. It also discussed
H.R.4163, the "Mercury in Dental Filling Disclosure and Prohibition Act,"
cosponsored by Committee Chair Dan Burton (R-Ind.) and Congresswomen Diane
Watson (D-CA).

"I applaud the cosponsors of H.R. 4163 for their interest in hearing about the
health and environmental concerns related to use and release of dental
mercury," said Michael Bender, Director of the Mercury Policy Project, who
testified before the Committee. "US dentists are among the top mercury
users-on average consuming over 30 tons of toxic mercury each year-and are the
largest polluter of mercury to the Nation's wastewater."

Mercury is a persistent, bioaccumulative neurotoxin that can affect the brain,
spinal cord, kidneys and liver. Recent data from the Centers for Disease
Control indicate that one in 8 women of reproductive age in the US have blood
mercury levels that pose a risk to the developing fetus. The Food and Drug
Administration issued new advisories in 2001 warning pregnant women and
children not to eat certain seafood due to high mercury.

"The American Dental Association should stop deceiving the public and instead
let them know that amalgams are 50% mercury, one of the most toxic elements on
earth," said Charles Brown, Esq., of Consumers for Dental Choice. "We strongly
support H.R.4163 and efforts to ban placement of this deadly toxin-especially
in the mouths of pregnant women and children."

The Mercury Policy Project recently co-released a report highlighting the
pathways by which dental mercury is released. Amalgam materials are dumped
down the drain or disposed in waste landfills or incinerators. The Association
of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies determined dental uses as "by far" the
greatest contributors to waste water treatment plants, accounting, on average,
for 40% of the mercury load.

Yet the report also presents examples where dental mercury pollution has been
significantly reduced. Mercury pollution has been reduced in Toronto by 50% to
60% over the past year due solely to installation of amalgam separators and
employment of best management practices. A 2001 study conducted cooperatively
between the Minnesota Dental Association and Metropolitan Council
Environmental Services found significant reductions of between 29 and 44
percent in mercury loadings from dental clinics at the two municipal
wastewater treatment plants after separators were installed. In addition, the
ADA recently tested 12 amalgam separators in the US, and found that all
exceeded standards and that a majority exhibited removal efficiencies in
excess of 99%.

"Based on conservative estimates, the costs for dental clinics in the US to
operate amalgam separators would average approximately $600 dollars per year,"
said Bender. "This is a cost effective solution and I applaud the proactive
approach taken by the American Dental Association in evaluating amalgam
separators for their members." ###